Online Coordination Mechanism for Road Infrastructure Restoration using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

The goal of this thesis is to study two barriers of efficient road network restoration, namely, the lack of debris information and the lack of coordination among the restoration operations. We develop an integrative online optimization model with a model-based data diffusion component to coordinate three restoration-interdependent operations in the disaster response phases such as damage assessment, road recovery, and relief distribution. The model developed for the damage assessment operation controls the debris data diffusion speed in the integrative framework. This data is periodically shared with an online model developed to prioritize the recovery process for blocked roads. Road prioritization is done in a way to make the highest acceleration in the relief distribution operation. The integrative framework is tested on the road network of Miami-Dade and its performance is compared with an online heuristic benchmark mimicking the performance of the Federal Emergency Management Agency

Electric vehicle routing, arc routing, and team orienteering problems in sustainable transportation

[EN] The increasing use of electric vehicles in road and air transportation, especially in last-mile delivery and city mobility, raises new operational challenges due to the limited capacity of electric batteries. These limitations impose additional driving range constraints when optimizing the distribution and mobility plans. During the last years, several researchers from the Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, and Operations Research communities have been developing optimization, simulation, and machine learning approaches that aim at generating efficient and sustainable routing plans for hybrid fleets, including both electric and internal combustion engine vehicles. After contextualizing the relevance of electric vehicles in promoting sustainable transportation practices, this paper reviews the existing work in the field of electric vehicle routing problems. In particular, we focus on articles related to the well-known vehicle routing, arc routing, and team orienteering problems. The review is followed by numerical examples that illustrate the gains that can be obtained by employing optimization methods in the aforementioned field. Finally, several research opportunities are highlighted.This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities (PID2019-111100RB-C21-C22/AEI/10.13039/501100011033, RED2018-102642-T), the SEPIE Erasmus+Program (2019-I-ES01-KA103-062602), and the IoF2020-H2020 (731884) project.Do C. Martins, L.; Tordecilla, RD.; Castaneda, J.; Juan-Pérez, ÁA.; Faulin, J. (2021). Electric vehicle routing, arc routing, and team orienteering problems in sustainable transportation. Energies. 14(16):1-30. https://doi.org/10.3390/en14165131130141

The case of Guarda Nacional Republicana

It is known that the quickness and effectiveness of Search and Rescue (SAR) missions are crucial to their success. This study has the purpose of understanding how the application of an Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) in SAR missions, could bring improved outcomes and be an added value to the procedures that are already performed by SAR teams. In this study, the results were obtained by performing a series of field trials, based on the recreation of real SAR scenarios and the implementation of an operational plan proposal, with recordings of time lapses at different phases of the operation. The reports of the real scenarios were provided by the teams of the Grupo de Intervenção, Proteção e Socorro (GIPS), who are under the command of the Unidade de Intervenção (UI), specialized in this type of missions. Both GIPS and UI are dependent on Tenente General Comandante Geral of the Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR). A survey developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was also applied at the end of each trial in order to evaluate the workload index of the participants in the trials. Throughout this research, conclusions are obtained taking into account the difference of an UAS operation between day and night periods, the improvements to the current procedures, but also the limitations of this system, such as the measures that should be taken when this system is applied in SAR missions. Conclusions were also based on the replies to the surveys. The focus of this case study was the use of an UAS in SAR missions performed in a mountain environment, well known by its adverse weather conditions. This study proved that, under these kinds of conditions, the use of the UAS was not always possible due to their own limitations and the validation of the proposed operational plan was obtained.Sabe-se que a rapidez e eficácia na realização de missões de busca e salvamento, são fatores cruciais para assegurar o seu sucesso. Um dos principais objetivos deste estudo é perceber se, a aplicação de um Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS), neste tipo de missões, pode ou não acarretar evoluções e por sua vez melhorias aos procedimentos já anteriormente realizados pelas equipas de busca e salvamento. Os resultados deste estudo foram alcançados através da realização de ensaios no terreno, tendo como base a recriação de cenários reais de busca e salvamento que tivessem já ocorrido. Através da implementação de uma proposta de plano operacional, foram também retirados diversos tempos de desempenho em diferentes fases da operação. Os relatórios dos cenários reais foram disponibilizados pelas equipas do Grupo de Intervenção, Proteção e Socorro (GIPS) que, estão sob o comando da Unidade de Intervenção (UI) especializadas neste tipo de missões. Tanto o GIPS como a UI estão dependentes do Tenente General Comandante Geral da Guarda Nacional Republicana (GNR). Foi também aplicado um inquérito desenvolvido pela National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) para avaliar o índice de carga de trabalho dos participantes no final de cada um dos ensaios. Ao longo desta pesquisa, foram tiradas conclusões sobre a diferença na operação de um UAS entre o período diurno e noturno, as melhorias sentidas nos procedimentos usados atualmente, assim como as suas limitações e medidas que devem ser tomadas quando aplicado em missões de busca e salvamento. Também são retiradas conclusões a partir das respostas obtidas ao inquérito. Este caso de estudo tem, como foco, as missões de busca e salvamento realizadas em ambiente montanhoso bem conhecido pelas suas condições climatéricas adversas. Foi também verificado que na presença destas condições a aplicação de um UAS nem sempre é possível, devido as limitações próprias do equipamento e obteve-se a validação do plano operacional proposto

An overview of robotics and autonomous systems for harsh environments

Across a wide range of industries and applications, robotics and autonomous systems can fulfil the crucial and challenging tasks such as inspection, exploration, monitoring, drilling, sampling and mapping in areas of scientific discovery, disaster prevention, human rescue and infrastructure management, etc. However, in many situations, the associated environment is either too dangerous or inaccessible to humans. Hence, a wide range of robots have been developed and deployed to replace or aid humans in these activities. A look at these harsh environment applications of robotics demonstrate the diversity of technologies developed. This paper reviews some key application areas of robotics that involve interactions with harsh environments (such as search and rescue, space exploration, and deep-sea operations), gives an overview of the developed technologies and provides a discussion of the key trends and future directions common to many of these areas